Anil Kumble faces a 'Jumbo' task as India coach

India's new coach Anil Kumble will face a multitude of challenges as the
team prepares for a hectic season, which includes as many as 17 Tests
matches, starting with the tour of the West Indies next month.

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Jepher Christopher Nickels

New Delhi

June 23, 2016

UPDATED: June 23, 2016 18:37 IST

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) today named former India captain Anil Kumble as the head coach of the Indian national team. The onus will be on him to turn India's fortunes in all three formats. Here's a look at the challenges the new coach has to overcome with, in the next one year or so.

FIRST ASSIGNMENT

Kumble's first assignment will be India's Test tour of the West Indies. The series will see India and the hosts play four Tests and a couple of warm-ups in the seven-week long campaign. Interestingly, when India last toured the West Indies in 2011 it was under a new coach -- Duncan Fletcher -- and this time too, the new coach's first assignment will be a tour far west. India had won the three-match Test series 1-0, the five-match ODIs 3-2 and were victorious in the one-off T20 International.

Virat Kohli also started his Test career in the Caribbean. But he has come a long way since his first Test series and has matured to become the backbone of the Indian batting line-up, even in whites.

India have fielded a strong 17-member unit with the top players making a return after a break. Pacer Shardul Thakur is the lone new face in the squad while Mohammad Shami makes a comeback after an injury layoff. Bhuvneshwar Kumar has also returned the side.

CHALLENGES AHEAD

India play 13 Tests in the upcoming 2016-17 home season - three vs New Zealand, five vs England, four vs Australia and one vs Bangladesh. That's not all, India will also host eight ODIs and three T20Is in this period. Apart from handling the young guns, the coach and his support staff will also have to cope with injuries as there will be 85 days of Test matches with a lot of travelling involved.

In the last one year, India have done well in the Test matches under Kohli's captaincy, winning historic series against Sri Lanka and South Africa, and drawing their one-off match against Bangladesh. However, it was in the 50-over format in which India were beaten black and blue, with stunning defeats against Bangladesh, South Africa and Australia.

T20Is have been a saviour for MS Dhoni and Co. They enjoyed victories against Australia, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe and won Asia Cup T20. India also reached the semi-final of the World Twenty20 earlier this year at home. The above achievements and failures have come at a time when India were without a head coach but under team director Ravi Shastri. Duncan Fletcher's contract was not renewed after India's 2015 World Cup semi-final exit.

CAPTAINCY CONUNDRUM

What's the way forward for India as far as captaincy across formats is concerned? Should they continue with the split captaincy? Or should the BCCI ask Dhoni to step aside and let Kohli lead in the all three formats? Dhoni's success rate has gone down. He won his first ODI series in 20 months after comprehensively beating a listless Zimbabwe 3-0 last week. But he had an unremarkable 2015, losing a tri-series Down Under, failing to defend the World Cup title, getting beaten by Bangladesh, losing to South Africa at home followed by yet another humiliation in Australia. Dhoni has talked about the process more than results but that has cost India series after series.

His defensive captaincy has also drawn a lot of flak. Besides, his batting form has reached an all-time low.

On the other hand, Kohli's aggressive leadership has given India historic Test series victories. What also goes in Kohli's favour to get the captain's arm-band is his matured batting that has been instrumental in whatever success the team has achieved.

MISSION 2019

There's no doubt that India have an hectic season ahead where they play 17 Test matches, including four in the West Indies, but the head coach will also have to keep in mind the limited-overs formats, with the ICC Champions Trophy in June in England next year. India will enter the tournament as defending champions.

Kumble will have to build a team keeping in mind World Cup in 2019 in England and the World Twenty20 in 2020 in Australia. The coach will also have to decide the future of Dhoni as a player and see if India's most successful skipper fits into his limited-overs teams. Many believe, MSD still has a lot to contribute as a player but for that to happen, he will have to get his mojo back and perform.

AWAY TEST WINS

India's previous Test series victory before last year's Sri Lanka triumph was in 2011 in the West Indies. Since then, it has been a horrendous journey for India, losing to England and Australia (twice over), and New Zealand and South Africa. More than the losses, it has been the margin of defeats that has hurt India the most, especially in England and Australia.

The last time India won a Test series against England was in 2007 while they are yet to register their first Test series win in Australia. India's best result Down Under so far has been a 1-1 draw in 2003-04.

Kumble will have to invent a formula on how to achieve success in Test cricket away from home, especially when playing on pitches like England and Australia.

DIFFERENT TEAMS FOR DIFFERENT FORMATS?

Under the new coach, will India go England and Australia's way in choosing horses for courses or will they stick to what they have been doing for ages? With the amount of cricket being played nowadays, one has to keep in mind the workload each player has to go through.